Hershey joins effort to help farmers in Africa

Hershey has joined a group founded by General Mills to help African food companies feed people and create jobs there.

The Hershey Company(HSY) joined Partners in Food Solutions, allowing the group created by Minneapolis conglomerate General Mills(GIS) to expand to the cocoa processors of West Africa.

"Our work with cocoa communities in the region spans decades," said Hershey CEO John Bilbrey. "This partnership will allow us to link the technical and business expertise of Hershey employees with a broader range of food-based businesses, and provide nutrition to children in the region."

Other members of the Minnesota nonprofit include the Minneapolis conglomerate Cargill, the Dutch nutrition and pharma company Royal DSM and the Swiss tech company Bühler. They also work with the organizations U.S. AID and the United Nations World Food Programme.

The group said that it will help African farmers and food processors develop an efficient "food chain" to feed people and create jobs. The goal is to keep food affordable for consumers, while supporting a stable market for farmers, according to the group.

Partners in Food Solutions, formed in 2008, said that it's worked with 600 food companies in five countries in Africa by providing training and consulting, sustaining a market for 829,000 small farmers.